Accidents happen often and without warning, and when they do the speed of response and access of critical user information determines their survivability. The sooner that a first responder can treat an emergency situation, and the more information the first responder has access to regarding the person who is in a crisis situation, the better the chance of minimizing the risk of permanent damage, disability or even death.
Each year, about 1.1 million Americans suffer a heart attack. About 460,000 of those attacks are fatal. About half of those deaths occur within 1-2 hours of the start of the symptoms and before the person reaches the hospital. The sooner a patient receives medical attention, and the more personal health information known about the patient, the higher probability of surviving and preventing the permanent damage. The Journal of the American Heart Association revealed that those who received lifesaving, clot-busting therapy within the first hour of a heart attack can almost triple their chance of survival. While heart attacks are at the top of the list, strokes, seizures and personal injuries resulting from accidents are also leading causes for loss of life.
While numerous companies have marketed fee-based patient monitoring systems, there are no known systems that can access the 9-1-1 emergency system directly and provide timely critical health information to the first responder without going through a middle-man for patient information. A review of more than 30 emergency responders demonstrate that not one of them calls the third party vendors for patient information. There are several reasons, but the first is that time is of the essence, and if the information is not in front of them it is considered useless. The second most important reason is because ‘a third party’ is involved and the information could be inaccurate which could create a liability on the responder's part. Therefore, unless the information is reliable and readily accessible to the first responder, or in the possession of the patient, the first responder will not use the information.
There are companies that have marketed an emergency response system that will dial 9-1-1. Advance versions may even provide two-way speakerphone communication. However, no known companies have produced an emergency communication system with a digital personal health information subsystem incorporated into it's device that can be accessed by emergency responders at the time of crisis.
Current medical record systems are oriented toward a centralized process of storing and retrieving a User's electronic medical record system. Numerous products exist that are based upon complex and complicated systems that require the information to be located on a centralized server which is accessed through the Internet. In order to retrieve electronic medical records of a particular individual, the User, or those approved by the user (such as emergency responders or paramedics), must provide the proper user name and password of the person in the crisis to get to this information in a time of crisis. If the User is incapacitated and is unable to provide a user name or password, the emergency responder would not receive the critical medical information. If the User is located in an area where the emergency responders are unable to access the Internet, the emergency responder will not receive the critical medical information that could mean the difference between life and death of the User.
In addition, it is well recognized that the public's lack of confidence in the Internet and its ability to prevent hackers from accessing their personal and medical information inhibits most all attempts at placing ones medical history in an area accessible to first responders. Studies have shown, and common sense states, that the public does not want their personal information accessible by unapproved persons; and as a result, there has been a lack of business growth in systems that provide such a service that is located on the Internet. While a de-centralized system provides an alternative, to date there has been a lack of attention paid to develop a process by which the information is distributed and in the hands of its Users rather than centralized on a server on the Internet.
Thus, what is needed in the industry is an emergency communication system with a digital personal health information subsystem incorporated into a device that can be accessed by emergency responders at the time of crisis, the device providing direct connection with a 9-1-1 operator and allowing hands free communication.